In order to excel in swimming, apart from improving a swimmer's stroke technique, it is also important to increase the swimmer's body strength. One way to increase body strength is to perform weight training in a gym. However a disadvantage of this technique is that different muscles may be used than when swimming.
In order to overcome this disadvantage, training aids have been developed that provide resistance to the swimmer whilst swimming. Prior art patent documents disclose devices where a rope is connected between the swimmer and a piece of pool hardware, such as steps, to prevent the swimmer from moving and creating resistance to the swimmer. However a problem with such devices is that they can provide too much resistance and hinder the swimmer's natural stroke.
It is also known in the art to drag a bucket behind a swimmer to create resistance or drag. The bucket is attached to the swimmer by a length of rope. However, a disadvantage of these devices is that the bucket sinks to the bottom of the pool and scrapes along the bottom, possibly causing damage to the pool and providing uneven resistance to the swimmer. A variation of these devices allows the resistance of the bucket to be varied. A removable section in a bottom of the bucket may be replaced with different sized holes in order to vary the resistance. However, such devices are bulky and the resistance cannot be changed easily.
Still other prior art discloses parachute like devices that are towed behind the swimmer. The parachute has a hole in a canopy, and the resistance may be varied by varying the size of the hole, or by attaching a plurality of parachutes to the swimmer. However, here again a drawback is that the resistance cannot be changed easily, and in particular whilst the swimmer is in the pool. There is therefore a need for an improved aquatic training device.
The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that the prior art forms part of the common general knowledge.